Let's Not and Say We Did
by WATERMELON-S33DS
Summary: i've got this dumb oc named Gabriel Benjamin Maker, he's a huge dork and ppl like him for some reason. he's got a blog on tumblr if u want to know more about him. (gabrielbenjaminmaker.) this is just a stupid fic i wrote for how he met and joined the shane gang, bad writing and ooc characters ahead. also warning: there will be blood, alcohol and suicide mentions.
1. Chapter 1

"Dr. Blakk. There is somebody here for you." The worker popped his head into the large office.

"Who?" Came the voice of the villain, he was sitting facing away from the entrance.

"He won't give his name. But he said he worked along side you three years ago." As the worker finished speaking a grin spread across Thaddius's lips.

"Send him in." The man responded, he didn't turn until he heard footsteps that he knew well, ones that he hadn't heard for a long time. A sound that could only be heard by a trained ear since the man was skilled in the art of stealth.

"I've returned, Master." The man bowed, long red hair tied back in a ponytail hung down beside his head.

"Did you get it?" Dr. Blakk raised an eyebrow. His grin returning when a large, glass case was placed onto his desk. A blood red crystal was floating in the center of dark red liquid.

"It wasn't easy to get." The man's green eyes held a cold stare towards the case. He had been sent to collect an item known as "The Dark Heart". There were only three in existence, they were nothing more than pure dark water that had solidified from age. Any exposure to slug energy and they'd light on fire and burn away. The only way to save it was to carry it in Dark Bane blood. He had scars and burns to prove it was not an easy task to collect everything.

"Good job, Gabriel." Blakk hummed, admiring the prize that was placed before him. "Now… you've been gone a long time…" Gabriel cocked his head slightly as Thaddius began to speak. "I need to make sure you haven't lost your touch. I need you to do a few things for me~" The two men flashed devilish grins to each other.


	2. Chapter 2

"Thanks for doing this for us!" The guard cheered. Eli was walking close behind him in full prison gear, including a pair of heavy duty handcuffs.

"I've seen ya get out of some pretty sticky situations, so it's a real good thing you agreed to this." Only hours ago Eli had recieved a call for a rather strange request. The head of security for Stalagmite 17 had called and requested that Eli be put under arrest and try to escape. The boy new how to get out of plenty of situations so he was perfect, if he was able to succeed he'd take notes on his trip and report back, thus helping them strengthen the security on the prison. "Just… a quick warning… stay out of cell block 0… that's where all the really bad guys are kept! It's usually pretty empty… but there's a guy back there that you do NOT want to meet up with…" The guard seemed to shiver just thinking about it.

"Will do!" Eli responded, beginning to feel nervous about what may happen if he came face to face with this prisoner.

"We'll give ya a signal on the loud speaker for when you can start!" The guard locked the door to Eli's cell and walked away. About 10 minutes later Eli was given the signal to start. He quickly began looking around the cell, after a lot of hard work he managed to find one of the tools that was planted for him and he dug his way out of his cell and into the air ducts. The dust made his eyes and throat sting but he stuck through it. He tried his best to stay quiet, listening quietly to the guards scurrying beneath him, all knowing that his escape had begun. He managed to find an opening that he could drop down from, he kicked it open and dropped down.

"What… where is this…." He spoke to himself, looking around the dark room. His heart stopped once his eyes adgusted enough for him to be able to read the sign above the door

CELL BLOCK 0

He could feel his fear rising up when he heard chains rattling behind him, he turned and saw something that could've been taking right out of a horror movie. A man, slightly thin but still well built. Every inch of his body was covered with scars. He had a few strange markings as well, tattoos. Eli couldn't get a good look at his face since long red hair covered it. The chains rattled again, Eli saw the man's wrists and ankles had chains leading from them to a hook on the floor. Around his neck was a leather collar and another length of chain.

"Are you lost?" Eli froze when the man spoke, his voice was deep and rough from dehydration. Eli swallowed hard.

"W-what makes you think that?" He tried his best to stand bravely.

"You don't work here…." Eli stiffened.

"How can you tell?" He took a step back.

"Most people who work here don't come back here unless they need to. Plus I can see you and I have the same taste in clothing." A painful chuckle came from the man as he lifted his head, revealing a bruised face and a split lip. It took Eli a second to realize he meant the prison uniform.

"Y-yeah… I should get going…" Eli slowly backed towards the door.

"Wait!" The man called. "Please… pass me that." He pointed towards and orange that rested on the floor just out of his reach. The man must've dropped it and watched helpessly as it rolled away. Eli didn't see why not, sure the guy was a horrible criminal but a little bit of vitamin C never hurt anybody. He picked up the orange and slowly slid his arm passed the bars of the cell. He couldn't even scream when a solid hand grabbed his wrist and pulled him forward, face nearly smashing into the metal columns. Eli tried his best to pull away but the man's grip stayed just as sturdy.

"Thank you…." Eli stopped. After the man spoke he released Eli's wrist and began eating the fruit, enjoying every bite and every drop of juice. Before the man could do anything else Eli made his way up a pile of boxes and back out through the air duct, hoping to never see that scar covered face again.


	3. Chapter 3

"We got a runner!" Shouts were heard all throughout the prison as well as explosions. Dr. Blakk rode his mecha beast out from the flames with a red haired man on the back of the machine.

"Couldn't bother with paying the fine?" He joked, looking at his boss.

"You're worth a lot to me and the company... but no where close to that much." Blakk barked back.

"Aw~" The man chuckled as he continued to load and shoot the blaster he had been given for his escape.


	4. Chapter 4

"It's just this way!" Pronto called back to the others, the trip had been long and tiring but it would all be worth it in the end, for they were headed to a slinging competition that promised glory and prizes of great size.

"Who's that?" Trixie spoke as she pulled up to the front of the group and pointed. Just before a bend in the path there was a wall, and in front of that wall stood a man. Long, red hair tucked neatly in a ponytail that hung low down his back. His skin was tan and smooth. His clothing stood out the most. He wore what looked like a white tuxedo, but with canisters strapped to the belt around his waist as well as a bandoleer.

"You think he's here for the competition?" Kord leaned over and whispered to Eli.

"Only one way to find out!" The Shane revved the engine on his mecha and pulled up beside the stranger. "Hey there." The man jumped a bit and turned around, his face immediately grew friendly. He quickly whiped off and placed his monicle back over top his right eye, just above a mole on his cheek.

"Hello there!" He greeted the group with bright eyes and a wide smile. "You folks wouldn't happen to be headed to the Slug Slinging competition... would you?" He sounded embarrassed and obviously lost.

"You're in luck! The magnificent Pronto is leading them there now~" The molenoid quickly spoke up.

"Oh goody! Would you mind if I tagged along? As you can tell... I'm sort of... lost..." The man sighed and looked down in shame.

"I don't see why not! I'm Eli, by the way." He stuck his hand out for a hand shake, the stranger took it and shook it enthusiastically.

"My names is James Amrey!" He chimed, his voice deep and echoing a jolly tune off of the cavern walls. "I look forward to our trip!" He smiled sweetly towards the gang.

"We should get going then, I want to get at least a little bit of footage before it starts." Trixie began adgusting the lense on her camera.


	5. Chapter 5

The grounds were busy, slingers were running around, shooting slugs and talking amongst one another, obviously excited for the competition.

"I'll go get us signed up." Eli spoke before walking away.

"I-I'll come with you!" James quickly said in before catching up with Eli.

"So... where are you from? I don't think I've ever seen you around." Eli spoke up after a few seconds of walking.

"Hm? Oh... I'm from further up north. I'm just here trying to collect a larger arsenal and maybe meet some slingers." James smiled as he finished. When they reached the stand James was first to write his name, he passed the pen to Eli who wrote his and the names of the rest of the Shane Gang.

"Well, this competition should be a good start! As long as you win your duels you'll be set!" Eli put the pen down and began walking back with James close behind.

It was later in the day when the duels began, Each member of the gang bid each other farewell as they made their way to serperate arenas. Eli's first oponent looked tough, but the Shane knew he could beat anyone.

The duel had a nice start, the man he was up against was the first to fire. A thresher slug spun past Eli's cheek as the boy dodged, he rolled and stopped. He quickly aimed his blaster at a rock formation and shot a rammstone, it made contact with the stone and broke it apart, bits of rock large enough to cause injury fell onto his oponent. The man quickly recovered and fired a flaringo, Eli jumped behind a rock and sat with his back rested against it.

"You know what to do, Chiller?" He asked the frostcrawler before loading it. He took a quick look up at the crowd and saw a familiar face. James? How could he be done his duel so quickly? Eli shook the thought off and went back to the duel, the second he fired Chiller he quickly loaded in Joules and sent him off, close behind the other slug. As soon as his opponent recoverd from being frozen, then shocked, he fired off a phosphoro slug while Eli was reloading. The slug hit him and knocked him back. Eli shook his head, dazed and vision full of nothing but bright colours, he quickly crawled under cover. He blinked hard, the second he could see anything he hopped out from his hiding place and shot a hop rock, the slug hit the ground in front of his opponent and knocking him off balance. The man fell with a thud, smacking his head against the ground. He waved his hand in the air, showing surrender. The crowd cheered as Eli collected his new slug and made his way up the steps and out of the arena.

"Good job, Mr. Shane!" James greeted him with a pat on the back.

"Thanks! Say... how did you finish your duel so quickly? How'd it go?" Eli raised an eyebrow.

"Oh... I guess my strategy works well." He laughed before waving to Kord and Trixie who had finished and won their own duels. Pronto following closely behind with his arms full of food.

The day continued like this, the gang would seperate to go off to their duels, halfway through the round James would appear on the sidelines to Eli's battles. Kord and Trixie would join back up with them. Pronto would hang around any of them at any time.

It was the semi-finals. Kord had lost his last duel and was off cheering for Trixie. Eli could feel himself tiring out, he rubbed his bleeding elbow as he recovered from a bad trip.

"I'm counting on you... Burpy!" Eli looked at the infurnus with hope in his eyes. Before he took a deep breath and prayed that this would work.

"Come on out, rat!" His opponent called. Eli had been hiding for a good part of the duel, trying to escape the constant barrage of slugs that was thrown his way when he was out in plain sight. Just before Eli took the shot, he heard James call out from the stands.

"Good luck! I know you can do this!" The words struck Eli with a second of strength, he jumped out and fired Burpy. While his opponent shouted at the wall of flame around him, Eli stood up with great trouble. His arms were sore from fighting all day. Luckily the other slinger gave up, giving Eli the win. Cheers broke out from the crowd, the loudest voices belonging to Pronto and James.


	6. Chapter 6

"You're lucky the finals are tomorrow." James spoke as he washed out Eli's wounds. The teenager winced when a cloth covered in disinfectant hit the gash on his elbow. "There's no way you'd be able to take anymore damage today." His voice was heavy with concern.

"I won't have to take any damage next round if you let me win..." Eli chuckled as James wrapped his arm.

"Not a chance, Mr. Shane. If it's victory you want then you'll have to take it, fair and square." James flicked Eli on the nose.

"Fine. Fine. Am I good to go?" Eli asked. When James nodded his head he began slipping his shirt back on, wincing when they fabric slid past the burn mark on his back. "I'm gonna take a look around this place. I'll be back in a bit." Eli yawned before leaving the room. A hotel had been booked out for the competition, each contestant given a free room. Since James and Eli were the finalists they were given a room to share, the other slingers were paired up randomly.

"Take it easy!" James yelled out before Eli left. When the door closed he pulled the ribbon that had been holding his hair back, releasing the locks of red. He took a quick look into the screen of his phone and growled, it was a good thing Eli was tired or else he may of noticed that James' makeup was rubbing off, revealing a scar on his lip. A knock of the door made him jump.

"Open up!" Relief washed over James as the hostile voice traveled through the wood. His green eyes narrowed when a large man walked in. "The boss wanted he to check in on you. Is everything going according to plan?" He asked.

"Yes, yes, yes. I've got the boy exactly where I want him. A simple 'accident' during the duel tomorrow should be enough to do him in. Now get out of here! Unless you want to fuck up the whole operation." James growled and glared as the other man left the room. The red head quickly made his way to the bathroom to reapply his make up over the scar.


	7. Chapter 7

**quick warning, there's blood and injury in this chapter.**

The final match, Eli could feel his heart beat increasing.

"Alright, slingers. Get set! Duel!" called out a voice over the loud speaker. Eli immediately loaded his gun and aimed, he paused when he saw that James hadn't moved at all. He still stood with his hands folded behind his back and his feet close together, almost like a butler. What as this guys plan? Eli quickly shook the thought off and fired an armashelt. A cloud of dust was thrown into the air when the slug hit. Eli kept a close eye on the space where James once stood, when the dirt cleared he was struck with confusion. Nothing but empty space. He quickly turned around just in time to see James stepping out from behind a large rock. He had a grin on his face as he pulled his hands out from behind his back.

"No way..." Eli muttered under his breath as the man across the arena from him pulled out, not one, but two heavy duty blasters. Both were a deep, shiny blue and looked like they could fire a flopper fast enough to do some damage. Not only that but they were quite large, they didn't look like they were built to be used with one hand. Eli quickly snapped back to reality when he saw the guns move, they were both aimed forward and slugs flew out from the mouth's of both of them. Eli quickly ducked and jumped out of the way. He turned around to shoot, but James was gone again.

"Bro! Behind you!" Kord called, Eli turned around just in time to roll out of the way of an armashelt slug. He ran across the arena and jumped down onto a ledge below, loaded Burpy into a canister and waited. The second he saw any movement he shot towards it. He grinned when he saw James' fly back, obviously from being hit. But something strange happened when he rose. James hooked up blasters up to the belt around his waist. Was he giving up? No. James crossed his arm, gloved hands raised up and held flat like pedestals. Without saying anything two slugs hopped cheerfully onto them, a thresher and a flopper. Curiousity pricked at the back of Eli's mind when James began... juggling them. He tossed them both into the air with graceful movements, he caught them both and tossed them once again. The slugs didn't seem to be bothered as they were thrown and caught behind the man, next came the hard part. James bit his lip as he threw the slugs high into the air, he quickly grabbed his blasters and held them straight up, both slugs landing neatly in the barrels, ready to be shot. Eli was in awe of the show. Applauds could be heard from the audience as James took aim and fired. Eli jumped out of the way of the thresher slug, knowing the flopper couldn't do any damage, but, it seemed he was wrong. Pain shot from his shoulder to the rest of his body as a splash of red flew out from his joint.

Eli yelped when he landed, he carefully placed his hand on the wound and looked at it. His hand was soaked with blood. Eli looked up with fear in his eyes and saw James running towards him, the man looked just as afraid, but, Eli could've sworn he saw a second of pride.

"A-are you alright Eli? I'm so sorry I meant to hit the rock behind you... I-I must've aimed wrong! I'm so stupid!" The man scolded himself. Eli was still in shock when James was announced the winner. Without looking away from the man Eli was taken away by a doctor to be treated for the wound. James was gone from sight in a matter of seconds as a crowd of spectators surrounded him and cheered.


	8. Chapter 8

Weeks had passed since the competition, Eli was fully healed and leading the gang upon the back of his mecha, Lucky. There was a large shipment of dark water headed towards a nesting ground for slugs. They were cutting through a shortcut, one that lead through a wide and barren path between tall mountains.

"We should catch up in no time!" Pronto called back to the others. He was about to speak again but was cut off when two strange looking ghouls flew past them, clouds of purple dust followed behind them, making it hard to see down the path. The gang stopped, each of them pulled out their blasters, ready for a fight. Suddenly, every grain within the clouds dropped to the ground. What once was an open path was now blocked by a strange figure. Dark and thin, a hood covering the face. The stranger walked down the path, slowly and smoothly. The air grew more and more tense with every step they took.

"I'm sorry. I can't allow you to pass." They spoke, a deep voice, obviously male. Eli tightened his grip on his blaster as he felt something. A feeling as though he had heard that voice before... in many places.

"We don't want to hurt anybody! Just move out of the way and we can all get out of this without getting hurt." Kord called to the stranger. No response.

"I've got a bad feeling about this guy..." Trixie whispered as she slid off of her mecha, the rest of the gang soon followed, all of them still holding their blasters ready to fire. The man chuckled and slowly raised his hand, fingers curling around the edge of his hood. With one swift motion he swung his arm down, throwing small pellets at the ground. A second later there was a cloud, he was gone by the time it faded.

"Where'd he go!?" Trixie called out when she saw the empty space. A sudden yelp came from Kord, when the others turned to face him he was laying on the ground, and upon his back was the stranger holding a blade above the back of the cavetrolls neck. A shadow seemed to pass over the valley and the figure was gone again.

"Keep your eyes op-" Eli began to speak but was cut off by a loud sound, like air rushing by. The sound was soon followed by Pronto screeching and being thrown across the valley floor. The man stood where the molenoid once was, his leg slowly lowering from the attack. Kord recovered from the previous attack and shot a rammstone at the man. His movements were graceful, but quick, he jumped into the air and spun, landing neatly away from the attack. He threw more pellets at the ground and was gone. Trixie screamed suddenly as a web caught her a round the waist, she was pulled back and landed at the man's feet. He made quick work of tying her up with the web and walking past her as if she as nothing to him.

"Anything else to say? Hero?" The man hissed. He approached Eli slowly. The boy's hands started shaking uncontrollably as if fear was somehow taking over his body.

"Get back!" Eli shouted, aiming his blaster. Just as he finished speaking the man suddenly threw his head forward, almost as if was bowing. There was a loud thud as a large rock landed on the ground. Eli and the stranger both looked back to see Kord lower his arm after throwing the stone.

"Just die." The man hissed before lunging at the cavetroll.

"Bro! Run! I got this clown!" Kord shouted as he blocked the man's blow with a large hand. Eli didn't need to be told twice, he jumped onto the back of Lucky and bolted past the two, he hoped the train was near and that he hadn't missed it.


	9. Chapter 9

**this chapter has a bit of blood and violence in it, and yes gabe did get surgery to fix up his face after these events**

It took longer than he had wanted, but Eli managed to catch up to the train and climb on top of it. He shuffled along it, fighting against the force of the train moving foward. There was a strange sound behind him, like heavy air hitting metal. He turned back, eyes widened when he saw the stranger from before, crouching only ten feet away from him on top of the metal beast. The stranger stood, the wind pulled his hood off of his head. Eli gasped, remembering where he had heard the voice when the man's red hair was freed from the black covering, it was tied back in a ponytail and flapped quickly in the breeze. Memories of the prison flooded Eli's mind for a few seconds.

"You think you can run... pathetic." The man walked forward, his voice full of annoyance. Eli began to panic, he tried taking a step forward but lost his balance and fell, his body making contact with the cold surface.

He did the first thing he could think of; firing a slug. Without checking what he had he aimed and fired. Without loosing focus the man swatted the slug off to the side. There was a low rumbling, that could barely be heard over the engine of the train. It took him a few seconds but Eli managed to figure out that it was the man, he was... laughing? His expression changed to something more twisted, his eyes filled with bloodlust and his mouth widened into a crooked smile, his teeth sharp like a canines. Eli quickly and uneasily stood, he strapped his blaster to his thigh, realizing that slugs wouldn't be very good against this guy.

Before he could put his hands up in defense something solid made contact with his jaw, his teeth mashing together with a painful THUNK. Eli stumbled back a bit, barely keeping his balance as he rubbed his jaw. He tried his best to ignore the pain as he ducked just in time to miss a kick that would connected with the side of his head. Without thinking Eli launched himself forward, using his body to knock the man's leg out from under him, they both landed with loud grunts. Eli stood to face the man, but he was gone.

A sudden pain shot through his stomach and he was knocked down just after catching a glimpse of the man crouching at his feet. He yelped as the same foot struck his stomach over, and over, and over again, eventually knocking him off the train. Eli tried his best to stay on the train, using the bare skin on his arms to try and keep from slipping off, it wasn't easy with how quickly they were going. After he managed to hook his feet onto the side of the train he looked up and made eye contact with his attacker. Deep green eyes burned holes through his blue ones. Red hair fluttered and covered most of the man's face as he stood over the boy.

"Who are you!?" Eli shouted over the sound of the train, hugging his body close to the metal.

"Who am I?" The man chuckled, his voice sounding different from before, unstable and full of energy. "A simple answer. My name is Gabriel Benjamin Maker! Once I'm done with you that name will echo through the mind's of everybody in Slugterra! The name of the man who killed Eli Shane!" Gabriel shouted and continued laughing, bringing a foot up to stomp on Eli's arm.

"Stop! This isn't right! Don't you know what Blakk does!?" Eli screamed.

"Of course I do! He's a powerful man who-"

"Don't you know what he does to slugs!?"The teenager screamed, cutting Gabriel off. There was a pause, the silence heavy with uncertainty.

"What the hell are you talking about!? Of course I know what he does! He takes slugs and he improves them! He makes them stronger!" The man shouted down.

"No! That's not what he does at all! When he ghouls slugs all he does is kill them! The reason why they're so strong is because they're unstable and in pain!" When he finished the man's face changed dramatically. His eyes widened in fear, his mouth opened in disbelief. A look of disgust and horror washed over his face. After a single second he shook his head and took on his furious gaze again with tears forming in his eyes, raising his foot once again.

Eli closed his eyes and prepared for the strike, but nothing came. All that he heard was a loud thud and something like rock landing on metal. When he opened his eyes everything was dark, but light soon flooded his vision when they left the tunnel. With great difficulty he pulled himself onto the train and looked around for Gabriel. The red head was lying a good six feet away from where he had been standing over Eli. It was impossible to read the expression on his face through all the blood that soaked his skin, his nose obviously boken, crooked, and bent. Eli panicked, thinking the man was dead, but was caught by surprise when the body groaned.

"I can't just leave you here..." Eli grinned to himself. He loaded Spinner into his blaster and took aim. It wouldn't be very good if the man fell off the train to his death. It'd be best if there was something keeping him on the train. Eli thought to himself as he fired the arachnet.


	10. Chapter 10

The train docked at the station, a loud screeching could be heard as it came to a stop. Workers immediately began unloading the train. Everything was going well, until somebody noticed the webbing hanging off the top of the train. A ladder was set up and a guard was sent up to take a look.

"Get me down." Came a voice full of rage, as the voice belonged to a very angry man. His face was covered in blood and his nose twisted in a grotesque way. Without hesitation Gabriel was cut down and had a crowd of workers around him.

"Do you need anything, sir?"

"Bring me a comb."

"Dr. Blakk wishes to speak with you, sir."

"Give me a few minutes." Gabriel hissed as he was given a brush and a cloth, he quickly set to work letting his hair down, brushing bits of web out of it's length, and wiping dried blood off of his face. It was not an easy task and he was only half way done when a large screen was shoved in front of his face. Green eyes within a pale face stared at him.

"By the looks of things the mission was failed?" Blakk growled.

"No. The shipment is here. But the boy got away." Gabriel took the screen and turned it so could see the barrels of dark water within the train.

"... That is troublesome... but, as long as the shipment has arrived safely, you're off the hook." Dr. Blakk hissed before ending the call. Gabriel sighed and continued brushing out his hair.


	11. Chapter 11

Months had passed since Gabe and Eli encountered on the train, the Shane's words echoed and haunted the man. Everytime he was sent out to dispose of the boy he'd freeze up at the sight of him, allowing Eli to escape. Gabe had enough of it, he needed to confront Blakk about the issue.

"Dr. Blakk? I need to speak with you!" Gabe walked into the villain's office without even knocking.  
"What is it Gabriel, I'm kind of busy right now." The man stepped away from a small machine on his desk, within it was a frightened looking slug.

"No. I-I need to talk to you now!" Gabe's voice rose once he figured out what the machine was for.

"Please, just wait a few seconds... hm... you've been with the company for 10 years now, correct?" Blakk looked over his shoulder, Gabe swallowed hard and nodded. "You've never seen the ghoulding process, though."

"Well.. I have been gone for the past 3 years- and before that I was always busy!" Gabe took a few steps forward.

"Today is your lucky day then." A pale finger pressed a button on the machine, the slug began screaming as a dark, red cloud filled the chamber. Gabe threw his hands up to his ears to block out the shrieks, without thinking he lunged forward, nearly knocking over Dr. Blakk, and began pressing random buttons, trying to stop the machine. His spirits lifted when the cloud disipated to reveal a healthy, horrified slug. The machine popped open and Gabe immediately collected the creature.

"Dr. Blakk we need to talk! What you're doing is wrong! You're hurting these slugs, we have to shut down everything and anything ghoul related!" Gabe aimed a hard gaze towards the larger man. "He was right about you!" The red head shouted without thinking.

"Gabriel, Gabriel, Gabriel. It's cute how you think you can shut me down." Blakk stood over Gabe. "Leave." He hissed, green eyes glaring into green eyes.

"Fine, but I'll have you know that you can't fire me! Because I quit!" To prove his point Gabe ripped an empty ghoul canister off of one of his belts and threw it onto the ground, red glass shattering and sliding across the floor. Dr. Blakk grunted before turning to face the door.

"Guards! Get this rat out of my sight." He hissed, sending a glare towards Gabe. "And make sure he knows what happens when somebody tries to stop me."

"Stop! You don't know what you're doing! Slugterra is going to fall apart!" Gabriel continued to shout and kick as he was dragged out of the office.


	12. Chapter 12

**violence and blood warning here! also gabe doesn't know how to handle his problems very well**

"Back off!" Gabe thrashed and squirmed in the grip of the guards, his nose was bleeding and his lip was swollen. Bruises were forming all over his body. He tried his best to kick away his attackers but it was no use. Pain shot through his entire body when a hard boot met his groin, he immediately felt like he was going to vomit as he fell to the ground, limp and helpless. He quickly threw his arms over his head as the guards began to kick him from every angle.

"Maybe next time you'll think twice before messing with Blakk!" One of them shouted before stepping on his side and walking away with the others. Every part of Gabe's body ached, he was bruised and cut and he wanted to die. But he knew he couldn't, he couldn't because that would mean Blakk won. With a few groans and a lot of swearing he stood up and began wandering. A small town came into view, he knew he had to pass through it to get home, but he didn't want anybody to see his blood covered face. he let his hair down and pulled his hood over his face. As he walked through the crowds people took one look at him and stepped out of the way. Mothers panicked and pulled their children out of the way when they saw him, the man who had taken lives and destroyed people. Finally knowing that Gabe had been doing wrong all these years opened up the world a bit, he finally saw how he had hurt everybody and how much of a monster he was. He began jogging to try and escape the stares, he didn't stop running when he reached the edge of the town, he ran, and ran until he reached his home. Free from crowds, he let his emotions get the better of him. Tears flowed from his cheeks, cleaning a bit of blood away. The drops hit the floor, leaving small red patches.

"I'm sorry..." Gabe whispered. He walked further into the house and sat down on the couch, two worried slug hounds quickly jumped up and began poking and licking him. As he continued to cry he pet the animals. A third soon joined but only sat and stared at the man. "It's alright... Abigail." The third hound layed down when she heard her name. Her brothers, Gunther and Luther, continued to smother the man in attempts to heal him. "I can't do this..." Gabe eventually hissed, pressing his hands against the sides of his head. His throat burned and he felt his eyes swelling from bruising. Without thinking he stood up, nearly knocking over the dogs who had been showing him affection, and made his way to his washroom. He threw open the medicine cabnet, bottles of all shapes and sizes fell out into the sink. A pair of scissors sat nicely on the shelf, he wraped his bloody and cut hand around it. When he slammed the door shut the mirror on it cracked, the glass obscuring Gabe's reflection. His eyes were red and glassy, he could barely recognize himself through all the blood. His hair was a mess, a red waterfall, filled with dirt, knots. and debris. With a deep breath he grabbed a handful of it, pulled it and closed the sharp blade of the scissors around the locks, slicing them. For the few minutes he was cutting he refused to look up, only at the counter below him where stray hairs fell. When he finished he slowly raised his head, his eyes locking with his own. His hair looked even worse than before. It was messy and cut awkwardly, obvious that it had been cut by somebody who could barely see straight. Now that he had calmed down a bit he began working to fix it up, cutting the bits of hair that were longer than the rest, he even took a brush to try and tame it. The back had been cut so short that it refused to stay down, sticking up at weird angles. He rubbed his eyes and looked back at his reflection, he began running his hand through the freshly cut hair, trying to get the loose ones out. He stopped for a few seconds to admire something he had forgotten about, the darker patches of his he had. Before it had always looked weird and messy, but now the darker red looked rather nice, covering the lower half of the mess on the back of his head. Gabe took a few steps back and looked at himself. For the first time in forever he wasn't completely disgusted with what he saw.


	13. Chapter 13

**quick warning for alcohol and plenty of ~colourful~ language**

"We're lost..." Kord mumbled as he rubbed his eyes, tired from the long journey.

"We are not lost! Pronto is just taking... a more creative route..." The molenoid protested and cleared his throat.

"If by creative you mean the wrong route, then I'm gonna have to agree with you." Trixie yawned and laughed as Pronto glared at her. Eli sighed before speaking up.

"We should just go and ask for directions. Trixie, Kord you guys go and ask around town. Pronto, you're with me, we'll go and pick up lunch!" Eli stretched his arms when he jumped off of Lucky's back.

"We'll meet you guys back here in a few minutes." Kord called back as him and Trixie walked off into town.

"You know any good places to get food?" Eli looked down at Pronto.

"Ah! Yes! There is a restaurant just up ahead! The food there might not be as good as Pronto's cooking, but it is pretty close!" Pronto ran up ahead and opened the door to a small building. Eli nearly gagged when he walked in, a horrible smell, like aclohol and fish, hit his nose. His eyes watered as he followed Pronto into the line up to get to the counter. He didn't make it very far though, something stopped him. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a few familiar colours, red hair and a black jacket. He stopped and looked at the shape.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" Eli asked. Green eyes glared up through greasy red bangs.

"What the fuck does it matter to you." The man hissed before returning to the bottle of vodka he held in his hands.

"Gabriel... right?" Eli asked, taking a seat across the small table from the red head.

"Yeah. Now fuck off." Gabe hiccuped between words, leaning back in his chair. Eli felt a little worried when he saw the man's cheeks were flushed from drunkeness. "Why do you even care!?" Gabe hissed slamming his fist on the table. He began coughing and quickly took a drink from the bottle in his hands, finishing it off. He threw his hand into the air and called for another drink.

"Sir... this is you're twentieth drink... you should slow down." A younger looking waiter walked by, his face filled with worry.

"Why the fuck do I care!? I lost my job." He paused to burp. "There's no way nobody is going to h-hire me." It took some effort to understand the slurred words. "I may as well drink myself to death! I should just die!" He smacked his head against the table and sobbed. The waiter looked at Eli worried.

"Is he with you?"

"Oh... no... I just wanted to talk to him for a bit... but I'll make sure he gets home safe." Eli reassured the other man.

"No you won't. Get out of my sight!" Gabe yelled, slamming a wad of cash onto the table before stumbling out of his seat and out the door, pushing the waiter over in the process. Eli ran after him.

"Wait!" Before he could catch up the red head was gone.

"Are you alright, Eli?" Trixie asked as she approached the Shane.

"I... yeah... you guys get directions?" Eli shook his head and asked.

"We did better, we got a map." Kord pulled a slip of paper out and handed it to the boy.

"... sweet..." Eli tried his best to sound excited, his voice still heavy with concern for the drunken man.


	14. Chapter 14

**BIG WARNINGS FOR THIS CHAPTER! warnings for things like: alcohol, smoking, implied drug use, suicide, and vomit mentions.**

Over the next few months Gabe continued with drinking, he smoked, went out to bars and strip clubs. He had tried several times to kill himself, but, no matter how much he threw up or how many times he felt his heart stop he was still stuck. He was stuck being alive, something was forcing him to stay alive. The more he thought about this thing, the more he realized the perfect way to end his life. But he didn't have what he needed. He had grown tired and bored tearing his body apart that he decided he needed a day off. Something to calm himself down.  
The sky was dark and the air was cool as he stood outside of a restaurant. The cigarrette in his hands warmed his fingers and lips. His nose stung from the biting cold and he could feel a headache coming on from lack of alcohol and the sound of people talking around him. He closed his eyes and hoped that a certain somebody wouldn't show up. Everytime he went out to a bar or out to smoke he'd run into the Shane boy, even in places where he was too young to enter. He always found his way in and ruined Gabe's night with his voice. Just as Gabe breathed in the chemicals he heard the one thing he didn't want to face.

"Hey!" Eli called, his voice ate away at Gabe's patience, causing the man to bite down, cutting his cigarette right in half. When the boy approached him he spat out the chunk. It rolled across the ground, glistening from the layer of saliva on it. Eli looked down at in slight disgust.

"Stop following me." Gabe stepped forward, pressing his chest against Eli's to try and threaten the boy. Eli coughed when he smelled the man's breath, a hot cloud of horrible smells stinging his nose. He stepped away with his nose pinched between two fingers and Gabriel took out another cigarette and lit it. The previous one hit the ground and met it's cruel fate when a black boot crushed it and choked out it's flame.

"I'm not following you!" Eli protested. "We just happen to keep running into each other." He put his hands on his hips and glared at the man in front of him. "Listen... I feel bad about making you loose your job. You don't deserve all the stuff you're going through. When we met on the train I saw something in you, something big. Something that said a lot about you, you're a good guy and you care about the same things I do." Eli felt like his words were going to waste as Gabe turned his back and took a drag from his cigarette.

"What does it matter? I'm useless anyways... I have no place to go." Gabe mumbled under his breath.

"Come with me." Eli said quickly.

"What?" Gabe turned, looking at Eli like he was insane.

"I... can't believe I'm saying this. But, join the Shane Gang." Eli's eyebrows furrowed, wrinkling his forehead.

"Wha..." Gabe was baffled by the nerve this kid had. "I never want to look at your face! I never want to be around you! What makes you think I'll join your pathetic gang!" Gabe spat. Throwing his cigarette on the ground and putting it out. Eli stood firmly, even when the man stood over him and stared daggers at him. Those green eyes made Eli feel like he was being hunted by a hungry wild cat.

"Please." Eli said, puffing out his chest to show he wasn't afraid.

"Piss off." Gabe hissed after grunting, he pushed Eli off to the side, nearly knocking the boy to the ground.

"Eli!" Kord quickly ran up. "What are you doing talking to that guy? Didn't he try to kill you?" He whispered to the Shane.

"I'm... nothing..." Eli shook his head and let Kord lead him to where the other gang members stood.


	15. Chapter 15

**minor warnings for mentions of smoking and alcohol.**

It had been a few weeks since Gabe had last been to a bar, meaning it had been a few weeks since he had last run into Eli. There were a few times where he saw the Shane Gang wandering around in towns and caverns but he managed to keep his distance. He had quit drinking and smoking as well, as days passed his headaches had become more mild and lesser in numbers and frequency. To avoid feeling stressed out in public he had begun wearing different clothing, a pair of sweat pants and a baggy hoodie to hide himself from the outside world so others wouldn't run in terror as he walked down the street. With the amount of free time he had he needed something to do, so he picked up the habit of takings jogs around Slugterra, usually stopping at the farthest point from his house, in the middle of a forest, and training. He'd bring a bo staff with him and practice his aim, agility, and was another thing that started taking up more of his time, he'd run from building top to building top, or tree branch to tree branch.

An accident from the day before, involving a rotting tree branch and a 30 foot fall, left Gabriel sore and bruised. He decided he'd spend the day taking it easy. With a gross feeling in his stomach he bought a ticket for the Slugterran Express for a trip to Snowdance Cavern. As he waited for the train to begin moving he heard the sound of a child screaming for it's parents. He looked over just in time to see the heavy doors closing, seperating parents from a little girl. Without a second thought he lunged forward and stuck his hand between the doors, pain shot through his fingers as they were crushed, he managed to reopen the doors and the girl ran to her parents' arms.

"Thank-you so much! We-" The mother began but stopped when she looked at Gabe. Even through a genuine smile it was obvious to see who he was. She quickly tugged her husbands sleeve and they both made their way away from him. Gabe stepped back so the doors could close and the trip could begin. His feelings weren't hurt, he was just annoyed with people reacting to him at this point.  
An hour had passed by the time the train had stopped and Gabe was happy to be out of such a cramped place that felt heavy with Dr. Blakk's presence. He stepped out and began walking, he had made sure to get out at a point where he'd still have to walk to get to the theatre. He made sure to cut through a small fesitval he saw, wanting to see what was present and what games there were. He heard another scream from a child, he turned and saw a little girl loose her grip on her balloon as he mother pulled her away. He looked up helplessly as the balloon hit a tree branch and popped. The girl screamed as pieces of rubber fell to the ground. Gabe shook his head and found a stand that sold flowers. For only a few pieces of gold he was able to get a pink rose that had been dethorned and had a blue bow tied around it. He jogged for a few minutes through the crowds until he found the little girl. She was sitting sady on a bench, her head hanging low as her mother payed for a cook book.

"H-hello." Gabe approached her, she quickly looked up and scooted away from him.

"My mommy says I shouldn't talk to strangers..." She whispered.

"Oh, well, you're a smart girl for following her advice. My name is Gabe." He smiled at her, the girl giggled a bit. "I saw what happened with your balloon earlier... I hope this will cheer you up." He pulled out the flower and watched as the girl's eyes lit up.

"Thank-you!" She laughed and ran off excitedly to show the flower to her mother. The women looked down at her daughter when she felt tugging on her pant leg. A small feeling of panic hit Gabe as the girl pointed to him, the mother turning to look. She waved gently and mouthed out the words 'Thank-you' obviously not seeing the scarred and tired face under the hood. Gabe nodded back at her and made his way to Snowdance.


	16. Chapter 16

"One! Two! Three! Four!" Gabe chanted as he swung his bo staff. Practicing his form and accuracy. He stopped to take a break as his vision was blurred by sweat dripping from his brow. He sat on a log that was resting on the forest floor, covered in moss and vines that seemed to be pulling it down. A few muffled chirps caused him to stop drinking the water he had brought for himself. As he put his bottle down two slugs popped out from the underground tunnels, landing and looking around confused. Gabe rubbed his eyes to try and clear his vision, a foot or two in front of him sat an infurnus and a tazerling, obviously lost.

"We took a wrong turn!" The infurnus chirped, Gabe listened carefully, quickly translating and understanding the animals.

"I just hope we're not too far behind..." The tazerling squeaked back.

"Let's head back, Eli's gonna be worried!" Gabe flinched when he heard the Shane's name. Before the slugs could leave he quickly made a noise in the back of his throat. They turned to face him and jumped when they saw it wasn't a slug calling for their attention.

"You two are lost? Aren't you?" Gabe walked towards them, making whistling and chirping noises, much like a slug would. The infurnus nodded. "I... I can help you get home." The red head offered his hand and the slugs hopped on.

"Thanks! We live down that way!" The infurnus squeaked and pointed with his little arm, feeling like he could trust the man.

"Alright... just sit tight for a bit, I'll have you two home in no time..." Gabe smiled as he let them both down onto the back of his mecha. He slipped on his shirt, jacket, and boots and joined them, revving the engine and riding off towards where the slug had pointed to.


	17. Chapter 17

**last chapter!**

"I'm worried about them..." Eli paced back and forth. It was getting late, Burpy and Joules should've been home by then. The other slugs had returned home safely, what happened to those two? "Where are they..." Eli asked himself before groaning and sitting on the couch, his body heavy with fear and worry. Just as he began reaching for the tv remote there was a knock on the door, he quickly lept up and opened it, hoping to see the missing slugs. Instead he got a familiar face. Outside the door stood the red haired man who had spent so long yelling at him ad trying to kill him, but he looked different. His hair was clean and about as neat looking as it could be. His face had a more youthful look to it and the bags under his eyes were almost completely gone.

"Uh... I think these are yours." He held out his hand, on it perched Burpy and Joules. Eli's face lit up as the slugs jumped to him, both of them snuggling close to him.

"Thanks! Hey... do you... want to come in?" Eli offered as Gabe began walking away.

"Hm?" He turned and raised an eyebrow.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to ask you to join the gang again. I just... I want to thank you for bringing these guys back home safe. So, do you want a drink or something to eat?" The boy gestured in through the door.

"I... alright..." Gabe walked in, not looking up at the boy until he was in the hideout. "Also... I'm sorry..."

"What?" Eli walked past him.

"I'm sorry. I treated you horribly... and that I tried to kill you." Gabe began playing with his hair to avoid looking at the boy.

"Oh... it's alright..." Eli sighed.

"I... I think I'll take you up on your offer, by the way." gabe whispered.

"Offer... you mean you'll..." Eli raised an eyebrow at the red head. Gabe looked up and folded his hands behind his back.

"Yes... I'd be glad to join your gang." A small amount of regret followed those words as Eli cheered.


End file.
